Famous Albertans pick their favourite places in the province

Acclaimed photographer George Webber chose Alberta's badlands as his favourite place in the province.Grant Black
/ Calgary Herald

An aerial pilot's view of the Red Deer River as it flows through the Alberta Badlands and Dinosaur Provincial Park.Ted Pidgeon Photo
/ Edmonton Journal

Depending on your mood, you can hike the mountain trails or just catch some sun during a vacation at Waterton Lakes National Park in southwest Alberta.Peter Wilson, Special To SasKatoon Starphoenix, CanWest NeWs Service
/ Edmonton Journal

We live in a province of big and showy landscapes--the Rockies, endless sky, vast prairie, boreal forest, rivers, streams, lakes and those strange formations called hoodoos. But within each of these larger-than-life features lie some little-known places we might not have ever heard of, or places you have meant to visit but for some reason just haven't.

Borrowing the idea from the popular book, 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, we've asked six well-known Albertans to tell us their do-before-you-die destinations in Wild Rose Country. Some are predictable but definitely worthy, while others surprised us and made us think, hey, I need to get there someday soon.

Walk on the wild side in Waterton

Andrew Hempstead knows Alberta intimately. For the past two decades, the outdoorsmen, writer and photographer has been penning travel guides for a variety of destinations, including Moon Handbook titles on Alberta, British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies.

When it comes to his favourite spot in the province, Hempstead says, "Waterton Lakes, without a doubt as a mountain destination. It's a mini-Banff and it's a lot more visitor-friendly."

Though you're in the midst of some of North America's most wild and untouched landscapes, he loves that you can camp in a lakeside national park right in town at the Townsite Campground.

"It's an opportunity for people to experience the wilderness without going into the backcountry,"making it especially accessible for families with young children.

Be sure to stop by Pat's, a Waterton institution, Hempstead says. It may look like just another gas station, but the 40-year-old business rents bikes, tennis rackets, baby strollers, mopeds, bicycles and even binoculars. Its claim to rental fame is the Surrey, a four-wheeled quadricycle that accommodates four people for leisurely riding around town. Not only that, but Pat's also claims to have the only Slushie machine in Waterton. If you've forgotten to pack the charcoal or propane or any other camping gear, you'll likely find it here.

Hempstead also recommends taking a paddle around Cameron Lake. "You're in total wilderness and (the canoe) is half the price of Lake Louise."

If you're feeling more adventurous, he recommends the Crypt Lake Hike, which means taking a 15-minute boat ride across Upper Waterton Lake before embarking on the spectacular six-hour hike, which passes four waterfalls and involves using a steel ladder and going through a 19-metre tunnel.

Wrestling institution Bret Hart waxes philosophical when it comes to talking about his favourite place in Alberta.

"Some people are attracted to oceans and some people are attracted to mountains." For the record, Hart, also known as"The Hitman,"is a mountain man and Banff, he says, is his destination of choice.

The now-retired pro powerhouse in the wrestling world, tries to get there at least four or five times a year. When the six-foot-one-inch Hart's in the midst of the Rockies, he says he "appreciates how small you are in the grand scheme of things."

The drive alone can be therapeutic. "I find when I have to think something through, it makes whatever problem I have seem insignificant."

Must see:Hart's favourite things to do in Banff include stopping at the grand Banff Springs Hotel, where he likes to go for a cappucino.

He also recommends getting off the TransCanada Highway. "I like the backroads and getting out of my truck for a walk." On some of his jaunts through the park, Hart says, he's had the pleasure of a few wildlife sightings, some mountain sheep and once a black bear in a tree -- happily, from a distance. "I'm not really looking for a run-in with a bear. I wouldn't want to bring the 'sharpshooter' out of retirement,"he says referring to his signature finishing move in the wrestling ring.

He's referring to the amateur rodeo put on by the Foothills Cowboys Association, which holds events around the southern part of the province all summer.

"It's a good old-fashioned rodeo in a great setting...the badlands, the canyons,"Tyson says.

Writing-On-Stone is located on the northerly tip of the great American desert 40 kilometres straight east of the Milk River off Highway 3.

Though he hasn't been in about a dozen years, he fondly recalls the experience.

"It's pretty cool, like the old West. It's part of the old cowboy world."

Must see: "They have parks stuff (going on)," but it's the flora and fauna that's the main attraction for Tyson. "It's pretty spectacular..."

More info:Details about programs, campsites and hours of operation can be found at, http://gateway.cd.gov.ab.caand search under "parks." For a list of rodeos, check out fcarodeo.com.

Highway 11 a little slice of heaven

It's not so much obvious what Aritha van Herk would pick for her hidden gem of Alberta. But if you know anything about the author of Mavericks: An Incorrigible History of Alberta, you might guess the destination would have to be rooted in the province's past.

"I would have to say the David Thompson Highway,"named for the Canadian explorer, geographer and cartographer, who used this trail to find passage to the Pacific Ocean.

Highway 11 is a 110-kilometre stretch that meanders through some of the province's most spectacular mountain scenery, west from Red Deer past the Banff-Jasper Highway to Saskatchewan River Crossing.

Van Herk is very specific in her recommendation, which she calls a special place because "it's not in the national park system."

Must do: "You have to get out and walk, experience it at sunrise."Better yet, she says, you should be listening on your iPod to k. d. lang's version of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah.

"And that's as close to sublime as it gets-- anywhere in Alberta."

More info: If you intend to drive the highway, you might want to pick up a copy of David Thompson Highway: A Hiking Guide Book by Jane Ross&Daniel Kyba (Rocky Mountain Books). It details the 69 hikes that lead from the highway, which include all levels from short and easy to three-day treks.

Dinosaur bones and badlands

George Webber's haunting photos of the people who live in Alberta's Hutterite colonies and on the Blood Reserve have brought unique and compelling parts of the West's culture to the world. His photos evoke innocence, sadness and joy. They have been published in such magazines as Canadian Geographic, Saturday Night, the Calgary Herald's Swerve and American Photo. Well-known American photographer Mary Ellen Mark calls Webber "a lyrical poet with his camera."

In addition to his passion for capturing the faces, homes and way of life of the Hutterites and aboriginals, there is one landscape in Alberta that Webber calls his favourite: The badlands. More specifically, he points to Dinosaur Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, located in the Red Deer River Valley about two hours east of Calgary. In the early years of his photo career, he trained his camera extensively on the badlands topography.

"It's extraordinary because it's an amazing collision of rough, feral landscape and prehistoric remnants of the past," says Webber, who was born in Drumheller. "A lot (of those remnants) are sitting right on the surface. It's magic and surreal."

Must see: Though the desert-like region can be hot and dry, with sum-mer temperatures in the 35 C to 40 C range, he says this is the best time to go. Naturally, from a photographer's perspective, Webber says go early in the day for the lighting. "It's the most revealing and beautiful time to see the texture and shape in the landscape."

More info: The park offers a summer-long itinerary of fossil hikes, such as the Bonebead 30 Guided Excavation, Fossil Safari Hike and the Great Badlands Hike. The programs and hikes are so popular that reservations are recommended in July and August. As well, there are 126 campsites, many of them available year-round. For more information go to http://tpr.alberta.ca/parks/dinosaur/flashindex.asp or call 403-378-4342.

A park with a famous name

There's little hesitation when Peter Lougheed is asked about his favourite place in Alberta. That would have to be the park (Peter Lougheed Provincial Park) named after the former premier, who led the province for 14 years, from 1971 to 1985. No need to even ask him why: "Because it's incredibly beautiful year-round."

Among the lengthy list of accomplishments during Lougheed's political career--everything from kick-starting the oilsands industry to having a major role in bringing the Olympics to Calgary in 1988--Lougheed is likely the most popular politician the province has ever seen.

His popularity continues to this day and his name graces a Calgary hospital as well as a portion of some of the province's most beautiful and pristine stretches of wilderness, known collectively as Kananaskis Country.

It encompasses 500 square kilometres, and is located 90 kilometres west of Calgary.

Lougheed, who will turn 81 in July, goes to the park often, he says.

"We love going there and staying at the Kananaskis Village, going on a hike or sometimes a picnic."

A visit to the park is also de rigeur when it comes to family celebrations.

"One of the great joys is a birthday celebration with the whole family."Though he's gone to the park in every season, summer is the best time for him, he says, and it's also the best time to see deer and elk.

Must see: Lougheed recommends a visit to the William Watson Lodge, a year-round accommodation for disabled adults and Alberta senior citizens 65 years and older, located in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park. It's remarkable for allowing easy access to people who might not otherwise get to enjoy some of Alberta's most stunning scenery.

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